Our Fantastical Voyage in the Eastern Caribbean! A trip report to remember! 12/6/2014

[MrDisneyFan]

Oh boy, well our night turned out to be pretty rough… Kate got sick 8 times. Now I was worried sick that this was going to be something really bad and maybe keep us quarantined in the room. I was not going to call the ship dr unless we absolutely had to. It was truly one of my worst fears of the trip – that someone would get sick. The poor girl! We had to have housekeeping come and remake the bed in the middle of the night. Diane was up with Kate a lot through the night and didn’t sleep well at all.

The girls were laying in bed exhausted in the morning so I got up and took Jack to the kids club. I figured the girls should try to get some rest so I took the opportunity to roam an almost empty ship! We had docked in San Juan and people were mostly gone. It was really cool to be on board walking around and taking photos. Here’s a video and you can see that it’s as if I had the ship to myself! So it turned out to be a great way to get some photos and videos of some of the areas:

View of Puerto Rico and the teen club below:

Okay, there’s a few ppl left…

I loved the artwork everywhere you turned:

General photos walking around the ship:

Of course had to have one of Walt...

One of my best friends onboard – the concierge expresso machine:

After walking about I went into the room to check on the girls. Diane was awake and we cancelled our port adventure – originally we had planned on doing the adult tour of old and new San Juan and were going to leave the kids in the clubs. Well Kate was still not doing well so that was out of the question. I was praying she was going to feel better and that no one else was going to get whatever was suffering with.

Diane and I were in the concierge lounge and we told them what was going on, they were very kind and offered some pedialite popsicles to bring to Kate. Diane wanted to see the island so we were able to get her spot back on the adult tour! I stayed with Kate in the room while Diane went on the tour.

Kate had managed to keep some medication down earlier and was hungry and thirsty so I was hopeful that was a good sign. She had a few dry rice krispies and some water but I was taking it really really slow. I turned off the lights and let her rest while I tidied the room and did some organizing of the room. This was the longest stretch I spent in the stateroom with Diane gone for 4 hours or so. I made me VERY glad to have a spacious 1BR being in there for so long.

Concierge was so incredibly sweet! They dropped off a couple of stuffed monkeys to help Kate feel better (one was for her brother, Jack. Just so he didn't feel left out). Concierge also delivered our cabana goodies!

The little package they left:

It had our cabana wristbands, a sheet with what the cabana includes, a drink menu with packages you could pre-purchase.

It was a bit of touch and go throughout the day. Kate didn’t get sick but had some discomfort off and on. And thank God, hallelujah! By the time Diane got back to the ship and in the room Kate was quite a bit better. Not near 100% but so much better. She had nibbled on some food and been able to get fluids in. Oh I was so happy but still nervous… didn’t know if it would last!

But Kate felt good enough to get ready and for dinner at Royal Court! We went by the lounge for a bit to thank the hosts and hang out for our early cocktail hour – free drinks, yay! After a bad night and uncertain day today Diane needed 2, lol.

The concierge hosts hung out with the kids while we lounged around. This was typical in our experience in the lounge depending on how busy things were (which was rarely that busy). We had a cocktail and visited with the host or each other or other passengers while the hosts kept the kids entertained. Julia helped Kate make a bead necklace with a name on it for the little stuffed ape she got. And Jack was coloring on the floor with Amanda and a couple of other kids. So relaxing…

On the way to Royal Court we bumped into Phineas and Ferb. Not the greatest photo, they were on their way away from the photo line so the kids got a quick high five on the way by J

We loved the table we had in royal court:

Actually took a photo of some food, just the kids plates though :/

Kate feeling a little better, lounging in the giant porthole:

Kate didn’t eat much, but did have a few bites of pasta. Our dinner was great tonight, loved it. The appetizer was a duck confit quesadilla that was so yummy. Diane said it was her favorite bite in the MDRs for the whole week! Also had a polenta cake with blue sheets and walnuts, tasty tasty. I had the lamb for my main course and Diane had a ravioli dish. Both of these were great as well!

Kate wasn’t feeling like she was going to get sick again but said she needed to leave the dining room. The girls went up to the room while Jack and I finished. I ordered dessert to go – 2 flourless chocolate cakes and 2 bread puddings to share in our room. Both were good but the bread pudding I wrote was really really good. I could have ate 4 of them!

With everyone feeling okay we spent some more time in the concierge lounge – it was after all time for the evening cocktail hour J. They had some board games and we played memory with Julia and the kids for a while before we went down for the evening show. Tonight it was Wishes and I loved it! It was my favorite show for the week. I loved the music and the theme and we all thought it was magical.

For a girl that started out the day feeling not so great she was still wanting to stay out! We had not been to the D-Lounge yet and saw there was karaoke going on so headed on over. Kate did a number: A Spoonful of Sugar. Thank god it wasn’t another rendition of Let It Go or Do you Want to Build a Snowman.

It was her first time ever and we were so proud of her for going up in front of everyone! She was the last singer for the night and they started right up with a Latin dance party next. Kate danced for a bit until I went up and embarrassed her off the floor, lol. We only stayed for a couple of songs before the kids were DONE for the day.

Kate was fine after that. So we guessed it was something she ate but we all pretty much ate the same things so who knows. I was just so glad she would be feeling better for the last couple of days…

Video on YouTube of our day docked in Puerto Rico (but mostly on the ship):

Video of walking about the decks – most of this was on this day in port when I was roaming around.

 

[MrDisneyFan]

Two very long weeks without an update! Hope to read more soon!

Thanks, lol, just updated. I know - haven't had time to do an update for a while. Will be looking to finish the rest soon!

 

[sager1969]

Thanks for sharing! My kid got sick on the plane before the cruise and I made the mistake of telling them the truth on the medical form. I had to talk with a nurse and a doctor before they would let me on. Your family is adorable! Glad you enjoyed despite the illness. I think sometimes the rich food or just food the kids don't eat in general mess with their tummies!

 

[DnA2010]

Really enjoying your review! Your room is fantastic and love the videos- really really want to try the brunch even more now!

 

[alyspins]

Loving your TR! Glad Kate was feeling better -- yuck! Not a fun way to spend a vacation.

 

[MrDisneyFan]

Day 6 – Last sea day! (Part I of II)

It was hard to believe we were at our last sea day already! We were up early (7:30) so we could get ourselves together for the gingerbread house decorating at 9am. Grabbed our coffees then breakfast at Cabanas. We had another delicious breakfast and headed straight down the aft elevator to Animators Palate.

Happy little man enjoying pancakes and bacon

A hosted met us as we walked into Animator's Palate and brought us to a table with everything for 1 gingerbread house. The gingerbread pieces for walls, roof and even a chimney. Of course there were candy decorations and royal icing to put it all together. Oh yeah and a nice round platter to put it together on so you could easily carry it up to your stateroom after.

The pastry chef was over loud speakers giving some directions and tips as you went along and cast members were going around helping out and chatting. The cast member helping us had been in the d-lounge last night leading karaoke so she recognized Kate. It was always so nice to see familiar faces throughout the cruise and different activities.

Just got the main pieces together:

Highly focused

Our finished masterpiece!

Mmmmm, tastes as good as it looks!

Ours next to the one the pastry chef did during his demonstration/instruction.…

All done with our creation we headed towards our room but had to make a brief stop by Pepe’s room…

hmmm, nobody's home.

The kids were all ready for kids club so Diane and I dropped them off after we left our gingerbread house in our room. It was a fun activity for the whole family to do together and was a nice decoration for the stateroom. It would have been even better if we would have not missed our original date and got to enjoy it for a few more days. Kate was feeling 95% back to normal. I'm convinced there was something she ate or too much food with the ship movement but her bout with tummy issues wasn’t something we had to deal with for the rest of the trip, whew!

Diane and I strolled around casually and didn’t have any big plans for the rest of the morning. We went by Shutters to take a look at our photos and both wanted a coffee so we stopped by Vista Cafe on deck 4. It was the only time we bought a coffee/latte. Made us appreciate the perk of an espresso machine in the concierge lounge that much more. Oh and Minnie showed up so we snagged a photo…

 

[MrDisneyFan]

Day 6 – Last sea day! Part II:

A short while later in the morning we had ended up chilling in our stateroom when we got a call from Remy. They were reminding us of our brunch that was scheduled to start oh, just a few minutes ago! Thank goodness we were in our room, we were having such a relaxed day we (I) totally forgot about our brunch reservation! So we told them we were on the way and quickly got dressed up (dress code is same for brunch as for dinner).

It was delicious and the view was amazing during the daytime. It was very very different from Palo brunch. It was excellent and all the bites of food were really good. But I don’t know if I would do it again. Totally glad I did it and experienced it but it was $50 a person and the dinner was only $25 more and it was so much more substantial and impressive. It’s hard to describe. Everything I ate was really great. Took photos of the menu and all the food. One thing about Remy is everything looks like a piece of art, it’s really quite amazing.

First timers, I would recommend doing both Palo and Remy brunches if you can fit them in. Great experiences. But the next time I'm on the Fantasy I won't kill myself to squeeze it in the schedule. If it fits in, fantastic. If I have to choose I'll pick Palo brunch.

Yum yum yum…

This was Diane’s favorite dessert, ever. and my second favorite of the trip. (right next to the grand marnier soufflé) This wasn’t described on the menu but was a hazelnut crème inside a pate a choux pastry with hazelnut ice cream. So good, it might be enough of a reason by itself to go again.

After brunch we picked up the kids and took them for lunch at Cabanas. We made up plates and took them back to the lounge. Kids ate there and it was very relaxing. A little more time for a few runs on the Mickey slide and Aquaduck…

There was a family ventriloquist scheduled for 2pm so after the kids ate we went down to the Walt Disney theater. It started off funny enough. Then he wanted a volunteer. Well they asked for wives to volunteer their husbands. A load of BS if you ask me! Things went south pretty quick… Well if you can imagine, Diane raise her hand and was pointing to me as obnoxiously as she could. I’m telling her to knock it off. I am not someone who wants to be up on stage. At. All. OMFG. Of course they picked me. So what could I do at that point? I went up and accepted my fate. It was mortifying for me but hilarious for everyone else, especially my sadistic family. I mostly had to just stand there. He put a contraption of a mask over my mouth so he could squeeze a trigger and make the prosthetic mouth move. So he literally put words in my mouth. Anyway, I survived. Barely. As I stepped off the stage he had people chant my name: “Mike! Mike! Mike!” And for the rest of the day people were coming up to me that recognized me from the show, saying "Hi Mike!". My son, Jack, thought it was so halarious. He would randomly (and still does now even months later) started chanting Mike! Mike! Mike! No photos allowed there so none to share. I think I’m thankful for that, lol.

We had a while before our afternoon soiree started at 4pm at the concierge lounge. We chilled then went back to the lounge a few minutes after 4pm. They had complimentary cocktails, snacks and at 4:30 a special guest (Donald Duck) was showing up on the sundeck! It was super cute. We had a chance to chat for quite a while with Kemisha. She has been with DCL for 5 years and was previously on the Magic.

After the soiree it went right into the evening reception/cocktail hour so more drinks and got dressed for semi formal night. Jack wore a suit minus the tie as did I. The girls wore pretty dresses and we took some family photos before going into the dining room. As much as I hate waiting around for photos, the kids looked great. My wife and I were both starting to have moments of sadness knowing we were almost on our last day...

Dinner was at Animator’s Palette tonight. First time in this dining room. It was so cute. It made me really regret missing it when we were previously scheduled (during the Crush show) I think we missed it because were doing Remy dinner. Food was great again! SO delicious and dessert was chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream. I had 2 cakes. They were small but I was oh so full after.

Our fantastic server, Yusef!

Back up to deck 12 then into the concierge lounge for a bit. We stayed dressed up but I removed my jacket. Too hot. Diane had a glass of wine but I was so full from dinner I couldn’t even have another cocktail! I had a coffee as I was getting tired and needed to wake up! We had our show for the night: Believe, coming up at 8:30.

The show was good. Not as great as wishes was but pretty entertaining.

Jack and I were tired by the end of the show. We all got back to the room and us boys were ready to chill in the room for a bit. Kate and mom went down to D lounge to play mirror mirror and sing some Karaoke. Kate went up again (of course) and said it was fun. They stayed out for a couple of hours. While they were gone I packed up a couple of suitcases, pre-prepping for tomorrow’s pack up.

This has been the most amazing vacation! I feel so relaxed and so at peace. I don’t know which has been my favorite parts or moments. There are so many. It’s like trying to pick a favorite child. Each one has their own qualities that you love. I love sitting here typing as I hear the ocean crashing outside with the verandah door open. I loved being on the deck today while Kate and Jack went on the waterslides. Just enjoying the open air with no sense of hurry or urgency. I love walking around the ship and enjoying the aesthetic beauty of the décor. I love all the artwork throughout the ship. Everywhere you go and turn there is more art on the walls, more beauty to enjoy. I have LOVED the concierge lounge and the hosts. They have just been incredible. Not just to us but especially the kids. We really will miss them…

Video of Day 6 sea day: Gingerbread decorating, Remy brunch, Mostly Animator's Palate dinner:

 

[NYIceQueen]

Thanks so much for a great TR! You have such a wonderful family...and I'm learning loads (ex - didn't know Remy had a brunch!)

Your report made me take a peek at Concierge for our sailing...no dice. It's $6000 more than what we booked at LOL

So sorry you couldn't get to experience San Juan, though...but glad you had a great time by the looks of it

 

[lulucornbread]

Who were your concierge hosts? Sorry if you already said it and I missed

 

[MrDisneyFan]

Who were your concierge hosts? Sorry if you already said it and I missed

Our hosts were Amanda, Kemisha & Julia. We loved them!

 

[Jetflyer]

Thanks so much for a great TR! You have such a wonderful family...and I'm learning loads (ex - didn't know Remy had a brunch!)

Your report made me take a peek at Concierge for our sailing...no dice. It's $6000 more than what we booked at LOL

So sorry you couldn't get to experience San Juan, though...but glad you had a great time by the looks of it

We went on a cruise on the Magic (5 nights) a couple of years ago. People we met asked about upgrading to concierge when they checked in. They were upgraded for $600. It is worth a try to ask when you get there!

 

[MrDisneyFan]

We went on a cruise on the Magic (5 nights) a couple of years ago. People we met asked about upgrading to concierge when they checked in. They were upgraded for $600. It is worth a try to ask when you get there!

I'd like to do concierge again but prices have gone up considerably since we booked this trip (we booked june 2013). I'm still looking for deals but seems like it's a LOT more then we paid port upgrades might be the way to go if one is available for sure!

 

[MrDisneyFan]

DAY 7 – Castaway Cay (Part I)

We (I) had been worried. The day before the weather was CRAZY WINDY! When I woke up the boat was still en route to Castaway Cay. Weather was a little cool outside and breezy. Did my usual routine of getting up early and getting a coffee in the concierge lounge and walked around a bit up on deck 12 outside.

We got a bag together but didn’t really feel like would we need much since we would be in a Cabana. It was so nice, just need our cameras. Everything else would be provided in the Cabana such as sunscreen, beverages and snacks. The ship didn’t have a problem docking so we were off!

View from verandah:

We debarked in the morning and got to the cabana at about 10:30. Well we got off the boat and my wife realized we forgot the autograph books. So she had me run back up for the kids’ autograph books (which incidentally we never ended up using that day!).

There was about a 2-4 minute walk to the tram pickup area.

Christmas tree in the distance…

And detoured for a photo with Daisy:

We got on the tram and got off on the 2nd stop at “Pelican Point”. Drinks anyone?

There was a counter for Cabana check in. They just checked our names and told us about the snorkeling gear and called for our Cabana ride. We were able to pick up included snorkeling gear at the rental place (no extra charge with a Cabana) then we were shuttled via golf cart to Cabana 7. Home sweet home!

The beach,, the cabana, it was so great! Very pretty but the weather was a little cool still. I think it only got up to about 70 degrees that day. No wind though. And it was nice enough where we were able to stay and have a very very relaxing day. The cabana area itself was so nice, literally a private beach. The whole beach area was quiet and so serene. The cabana had a fridge and was stocked with bottled Evian, sodas, cool wet towels (which we did not need this day). Fresh fruit, granola, chips and snacks were there as well. We had a call button to order drinks which I tested several times to make sure it worked. Alcohol was not included with the cost of the Cabana L. Still enjoyed some bloody mary’s just the same! There were floaty tubes and some sand toys provided. The hammock was heaven according to Diane. The seating in the cabana was nice and comfortable. We also had a fresh water shower in front to rinse off our bodies or feet. Very convenient! 5 minutes in and already made a mess!

Jack and Baymax enjoying the hammock

Tubes and boogie boards:

Looking further down the beach:

After getting settled, Kate wanted to go on the pelican plunge, a water slide you had to swim out to and go down right into the ocean. The water was chilly but we went out and down. Pretty fun but too fast a ride! Was cold waiting on those stairs as we went up. Kate went on a couple times then we headed back to the Cabana.

It was getting to be about lunch time so we went over to Cookies 2. This, sadly, was the least enjoyable meal of the trip L. It was pretty poor food quality. The burgers were like hockey pucks, hard and overcooked and cold! The chicken was just okay. The chicken and chocolate chip cookies were the only palatable part of the meal. Well, more cocktails to be ordered J. I think it was about 2pm when I ordered a bloody mary for myself and a Michelob ultra for Diane. They brought 2 of each and we were told it was happy hour for the rest of the day! Order 1 and get 1 free. But that was the last drink order of the day for us!

 

[MrDisneyFan]

DAY 7 – Castaway Cay (Part II)

After lunch Kate and I went snorkeling. We saw just a few fish and Kate didn’t want to stay in very long so we didn’t get to see the underwater mickey and other planted items. It was just too cold to stay in very long.

Jack had gone out with Diane and he went on the pelican plunge 3 times during the day. We spent more time relaxing in the cabana and on the beach area. Kate went back to pelican plunge and went on the water slide a couple more times later on as well.

Diane took a nap on the beach chair while the kids played in the sand. It was so secluded, private and felt 100% safe with the kids. They had barricades up so there weren’t any real waves coming up onshore. It was very shallow and calm water. I took a walk and found a medium sized conch shell with a live conch inside! It was cool. Lots of nice shells around the beach. I showed Jack the shell and he went with me to bring the conch back to where we found it and walked with me around the beach. A fish, probably 12 inches long swam up right close to us in the very shallow part of the water. What a neat sight. When I was with Kate the last time she did pelican plunge there was a school of these fish, maybe 15 of them that swam right by her in the very shallow part near the shore. Extremely cool! Kids wrote in the sand:

And one last photo before we stepped back onto the ship. He didn’t have a pen for an autograph…

We made our way back to the ship about 3:30. It seemed to be cooling down and had some packing to start doing back in the stateroom (sniff sniff). Back onboard we started getting showered and cleaned up for our last dinner onboard. Diane and I started getting suitcases packed. We had to have all our luggage outside the stateroom by 10:30 and just keep our carry ons with us. We needed to have everything we would need for the night and to get ready in the morning. Gosh, thinking back it makes me feel a little sad that it was all coming to an end soon. Last look at Castaway Cay…

We made a stop to the concierge lounge, getting clarification on debarkation process in the morning and dropped off the tips for the concierge hosts later that night. They were amazing, so great. Just incredible and attentive. On castaway in front of the cabana Julia was out and chatted with us for a long while. She buried Kate in sand and just chatted about her life. It was great to get to know her and the other hosts. You absolutely felt connected to them by the end of the week. The kids were very sad to leave them too.

Enjoying some quiet time in the lounge

Our last dinner was at Enchanted Garden. Out of all the MDRs we ate there the most, even though my intention was to only eat there once. This meal was okay, certainly better then lunch at CC. I liked the beef wellington and apps were okay. Diane had not a great part of the cut in hers. It was a little grisly she said. Dessert, however, was amazing! I had mentioned to Yusef, our server, how much I loved the soufflé the other night and he had asked the chef to make it for us our last night. So that was a treat but OMG. He brought out the dessert and he brought 2 souffles to Diane and 2 for me! I basically ate almost all 4… plus a little ice cream with it. They were so good, my favorite dessert of the trip. But I was way over full!!

Yusef and me – thanks for the soufflés!

Dinner was great and said our goodbyes to Yusef and Elodie. Kids wanted a last hurrah at kids club so Diane took them down while we were waiting for the souffles to arrive. Diane and I went up to the concierge lounge to get a cocktail from the evening reception. Had a drink but I had a bit of a headache for most of the evening. I hadn’t drank much water during the day and had a few cocktails through the day so I was probably a little dehydrated.

We went to the final show in the Walt Disney theatre. I think it was called “A Fantasy to Remember” Basically a variety show of different things. It was just okay. I would skip it next time.

Diane and I went to the shops and picked up some items, memorabilia before we collected the kids. We wanted to take them to the lounge before it closed for the night and we had to finalize the packing and get our bags out in the hall in preparation for debarkation early the next morning.

I was wiped, really tired. Probably had a few more drinks this day then the others and didn’t drink enough water. And even though it wasn’t super hot I was still out on the beach all day and in the water. I did not get drunk once the entire trip. Even with all the free cocktails. I really didn’t want to get sick or not feel well. And I was sooo glad. I didn’t want to waste any time being hung over or feeling crappy. And it would have been very easy too with all the opportunities for complimentary cocktails lol.

Diane took Kate out for a last couple rides on the aquaduck. She’s such an adventurous soul… I love it. We all went to bed… oh almost forgot, Kate lost a tooth that day as well! Can you believe it! She pulled it out in the concierge lounge. So Tinkerbell stopped by and dropped off some money and a note for Kate! So special. Buddy our elf on the shelf was gone this morning. But I am happy to report he found his way back to our house when we returned.

Stateroom host, Vicente. Another wonderful cast member!

Last look at the lounge for the night…

I set the alarm for 6:15AM, we had to be out of our rooms by 8AM, sheesh! Guess where my first stop was? The concierge lounge and got a coffee. A triple expresso with steamed milk with a spot of vanilla or caramel syrup. Yum! I went back to our room and enjoyed the amazing shower one last time as I got ready. Back at port: 1504

It was a sad morning for us as we got dressed and collected our carry ons together. We went to the lounge and all had a light breakfast. I had a delicious almond pastry and some smoked salmon with a ¼ bagel and cream cheese with another coffee. Diane had her bagel with cream cheese and the kids were happy to have cereal. Speaking with concierge they explained they would escort a group of us down together at 7:45 if we were ready so sounded good to me. We collected our bags and went to the lounge. The host sent us down a group at a time and locked out the elevator so we wouldn’t be stopped on every floor on the way which was nice. We all waited on the 3rd floor outside the Walt Disney theater until the last group came down. We were in the 1st or 2nd elevator load and there were quite a few. Diane realized we forgot Kate’s pillow!! The elevators were busy going everywhere so I ran back up from deck 3 to deck 12 to get the item and have a last look at our room… I got in with one of the last groups being escorted down and we all walked off the ship together. It made that part pretty easy. Now we were stuck. We waited for a good 7 ½ minutes right outside the ship on the gangway leading to the luggage area and customs before they let us move on. I was guessing there was another large group and they needed to wait for them to clear enough room. The luggage and customs area wasn’t that big and debarking 3500 people was going to have to be done in shifts.

We immediately got a porter who was a thin middle aged woman. Our bags were heavy, right at the 50lb mark. She surprised the heck out of me the way she hoisted the 50lb bags with one hand up on her dolly while she steadied it with the other! After she loaded all our luggage she rolled it through the line which probably was all of another 5-7 minutes before we reached the customs counter. If only international air travel were this quick and painless! He took my form and made some chit chat and that took about 30 seconds before we were sent on our way. Talk about easy peasy! The port rolled along with us as we followed the red line on the ground to the Disney Cruise bus that would be taking us home. I tipped the porter and she left our luggage which the driver loaded onto the bus. Hi ho, hi ho, it’s back to MCO we go.

The 45 minute ride away from port was sad. Uneventful, everyone a little tired. They played some cartoons on the screens for the kids. Most adults were back to checking Facebook and phone messages. The 45 minute journey went by fast and we were the first stop at MCO. I paid the $5 for the luggage cart here and loaded up our bags.

Back to the Hyatt we went and checked in. Someone brought our luggage up to the room and we got settled in for the day. I did go downstairs to the lobby to print out our boarding passes. They had a couple of computers with complimentary access to check in and print your boarding passes. That was convenient. So all checked in we rested up, kids worked on finishing up homework they were assigned for independent study.

Day room:

View from day room, goodbye Orlando!

Our flight back and trip was long but uneventful. Between getting up and off the ship so early, waiting to fly back in the afternoon then pickup our car I timed it at a 17 hour day! Sheesh. Long but good to be back in home instead of a hotel. Still would have rather still been on the ship. I was thinking how jealous I was of those that could do a back to back cruise!

Here is the video of our Castaway Cay day, enjoy!

This was the best, most magical vacation of my life, for our whole family and just an incredible experience. I recommend to everyone now that they HAVE to do it, at least one time. Find a way to save and do a Disney Cruise Vacation!

Since the cruise we’ve been to Disneyland for my birthday, woohoo! We got to enjoy 4 nights at the Grand Californian and were lucky enough to dine at Club 33! A first time for us but hoping not the last!! Off topic but it was an amazing dining experience, the food was fantastic, pretty close to Remy quality. Now I’m waiting for summer 2016 dates to open for DCL to see what our next cruising adventure might be...

Hope this TR helps other planners or at least was mildly entertaining! Thanks for tagging along!

So long and see ya real soon!

 

[iambrink]

That was awesome...I followed right along. I kind of feel like i was there! I am amazed at how much time you must have put into writing and compiling this report. What an excellent job! Maybe it was somewhat therapeutic to relive through the writing! Thanks so much for taking the time.

 

[tmarie]

LOVED reading your trip report! It brought back SO many wonderful memories!! It was great meeting you and your family on this cruise. Just like you said, everyone needs to do this at least once - it is the vacation of a lifetime!! We are hooked and are hoping to book for the summer of 2016. Thanks again for sharing your report.

 

[MrDisneyFan]

LOVED reading your trip report! It brought back SO many wonderful memories!! It was great meeting you and your family on this cruise. Just like you said, everyone needs to do this at least once - it is the vacation of a lifetime!! We are hooked and are hoping to book for the summer of 2016. Thanks again for sharing your report.

Thanks, it has been therapeutic in a way. Bitter sweet to write the report and even look back over it now.

I'm in a little shock at the moment. We just booked for May 2016!

 

[lizzyb]

Great report! Thanks for sharing!

 

[robin19871]

I loved this report. Thank You for sharing all your wonderful pictures and videos.. Concierge is wonderful and the one bedroom suite is so spacious. We were in room 12506 and loved the extended balcony as well. 5 more months and we will be cruising the Fantasy. Can't wait..

 

[MrDisneyFan]

I loved this report. Thank You for sharing all your wonderful pictures and videos.. Concierge is wonderful and the one bedroom suite is so spacious. We were in room 12506 and loved the extended balcony as well. 5 more months and we will be cruising the Fantasy. Can't wait..

Thank you!

12506, Thats the suite we booked for next May! We loved our suite but wanted to go for the extended balcony also our location was right over the fitness room and a little noise bled through a few mornings.